Evan Bates Named Spring 2026 CPI Supervisor of the Semester

The Career Path Internship (CPI) program is excited to announce Evan Bates as the Spring 2026 CPI Supervisor of the Semester. Bates serves in Idaho State Athletics, where he oversees marketing strategy, fan engagement, and creative initiatives while supervising CPI interns who contribute to many areas of the department.

Bates currently supervises CPI interns Jordyn Horak, Mary Thompsen, Kaili Tucker, Steph Cobos, Soren Hansen, Megan Moore, Colton Stoddart, and Benny the Bengal.

“The best part of being a CPI supervisor has been building relationships with students and helping them grow both professionally and personally,” explained Bates. “It’s rewarding to watch interns develop confidence, sharpen their skills, and take ownership of meaningful projects that directly impact our department.”

Through their internships, the students Bates supervises play a major role in the success of Idaho State Athletics. CPI interns assist with game presentation and run of show, game operations, graphic design and social media, photography and videography, creative media production, internal communications with ticketing and donor relations, and helping authentically tell the stories of ISU student-athletes. Their work gives them hands-on experience while contributing to the overall fan and student-athlete experience.

Originally from Montesano, Washington, Bates attended Linfield University in McMinnville, Oregon, where he studied sport management and played baseball for the Wildcats. During his time at Linfield, he interned with the university’s Athletics Sports Information Department, worked production camera for football broadcasts, and volunteered at major events including the 2021 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team Trials in Eugene and the 2022 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament in Portland.

After Linfield, Bates attended Central Washington University, where he served as a graduate assistant for External Relations in the athletics department. Over the summers, he worked as a baseball coach for the Port Angeles Lefties, a collegiate summer baseball team in the West Coast League. Shortly after graduating, Bates joined Idaho State Athletics to lead the marketing department.

“I’m incredibly passionate about our student-athletes and the stories that make Idaho State Athletics special,” stated Bates. “There are a lot of ways to get people excited about sports, but it all starts with the student-athlete experience. For students interested in the creative space, Idaho State Athletics offers a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience, build a professional portfolio, and develop real-world skills in a fast-paced environment.”

Outside of work, Bates is a huge Seattle sports fan. He also enjoys collecting vinyl records and Bronze Age comic books and is a board game enthusiast.

The Spring 2026 CPI Supervisor of the Semester award also included three runners up: Dr. Minhaz F. Zibran – ISU Department of Computer Science, Marie Stango – ISU Department of Theatre and Dance, and Denece Schwartz – ISU College of Education.

Operating in its fifteenth year, the CPI program provides approximately 800 paid internship opportunities annually to ISU students and has provided 12,000+ individual internships in that time. CPI internships provide career-related experiences to help students confirm their academic pursuits, gain valuable work experience, and prepare them for life after graduation. For more information about the CPI program visit isu.edu/career.